(Yicai) March 12 -- China was the world's most active applicant of international patents last year for the fifth straight year while Huawei Technologies submitted more filings than any other company globally.

China filed 69,610 applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty last year, down almost 1 percent from the year before, according to the latest report released by the World Intellectual Property Organization.

The United States came in second with nearly 55,680 applications, down by 5 percent from 2022. Japan was No. 3 with almost 48,880 filings, a 3 percent decline. Due to rising interest rates and economic uncertainties, the number of global applications dropped by 2 percent to 272,600, the first decrease in 14 years. Asian countries were responsible for almost 56 percent of all applications, up from a ratio of nearly 41 percent in 2022.

Despite the short-term decline, the long-term trend shows a steady increase and a global expansion in the use of intellectual property amid an increasingly global and digital economy, said Daren Tang, director general of the WIPO.

Not all countries were sluggish as in the top 15, India and Türkiye recorded the fastest growth of 45 percent and 9 percent, respectively. Moreover, the Netherlands, France, and South Korea accelerated growth.

In terms of sectors, computer technology accounted for the largest share of applications at 10 percent, followed by digital communications, electrical machinery, medical technology, and pharmaceuticals. Shenzhen-based telecoms giant Huawei Technologies, South Korea’s Samsung Electronics, and the US Qualcomm were the most active companies in this regard.

Among the global top 10 corporate applicants, Contemporary Amperex Technology ranked No. 8 as the Chinese battery giant filed over 1,530 papers to secure its IP, indicating the fastest growth.

In the education sector, the University of California scored the highest number of applications. China’s Soochow University, located in Suzhou, ranked second, and the University of Texas System third. Within the top five schools, Tsinghua University added the biggest number of new applications at 35.

Editor: Emmi Laine